How do you wash dishes?

There are always debates on what is the most energy saving way to wash dishes – washing by hand or by a dishwasher. Chris Mooney writes in the Washington Post about a report in the latest Consumer Report suggesting that the dishwasher is the way to go. Do you agree? Why you shouldn’t wash … Continue reading How do you wash dishes? →

Juggling government priorities to meet low carbon objectives

Promoting low carbon technologies often lead to less revenue for governments. This is most recently explained by Andy Sharman in the Financial Times, as he shows how the sales of low carbon cars in the UK is affecting government budget planning. Two thirds of new UK cars pay no tax in first year Two-thirds … Continue reading Juggling government priorities to meet low carbon objectives →

The energy concierge

Elisa Wood provides an enlightening article in Energyefficiencymarkets.com about a personal energy concierge service for homeowners. What do you think about this idea? Bewildered Energy Consumers No More? The energy world is littered with stories about energy consumers who give up on doing the right thing out of confusion… The family eager to install … Continue reading The energy concierge →

The role of energy savings kits

Todd Recknagel, CEO of AM Conservation Group, discusses energy savings kits on the Intelligentutility website. Because it is not often we hear about such a concept, this is well worth the read. Let us know what you think? 3 tips to help customers embrace energy savings kits Energy programs continue to offer utilities a … Continue reading The role of energy savings kits →

Impact of improving ventilation for commercial ovens

Lucina Dann writes for the edie website about simple improvements that are leading to good energy savings for commercial ovens. Carbon Trust slices 5% from oven energy use Simple improvements to the ventilation systems of commercial ovens could significantly reduce the bakery industry's carbon footprint and save bakers thousands of pounds, a new trial … Continue reading Impact of improving ventilation for commercial ovens →

Even Texas is starting to take energy efficiency seriously

Texas may be America’s largest producer of oil and natural gas but, as shown by David Holt on the FuelFix website, energy efficiency is also making important inroads. For Texas, Energy Efficiency Presents an Opportunity Energy efficiency might not be the first thing to come to mind when using the words “energy” and “Texas” … Continue reading Even Texas is starting to take energy efficiency seriously →

How people interact with buildings impacts on energy use

Understanding consumer behaviour is fundamental if we are going to achieve greater energy savings. Naomi Cole discusses behaviour based energy efficiency in a recent article on the energypriorities website. Behavior Based Energy Efficiency: The Power of People It’s no secret that buildings have the greatest opportunities for energy savings. To date, this fact has … Continue reading How people interact with buildings impacts on energy use →

Important new paper on Display Energy Certificates

Robert Cohen and Bill Bordass, both loyal readers of EiD, have written an important new report that reviews the history of the Display Energy Certificate and it identifies a number of lessons for improvements to future policy outcomes. Mandating transparency about building energy performance in use In 2002, the European Union Energy Performance of … Continue reading Important new paper on Display Energy Certificates →

How utilities are working with consumers to save energy

Elisa Wood writes on the EnergyEfficiencyMarkets website about how energy companies can influence our energy saving behaviour. Saving Energy: I’ll Do it My Way Saving energy used to be about not forgetting to flip the switch when you left the room. But those days have gone the way of the land line and video … Continue reading How utilities are working with consumers to save energy →

Lessons from retrofitting an historic home

Stephen Hanley writes a good article on the PlanetSave website about the experience a couple in Switzerland had in trying to retrofit their historic home. There are important lessons for all of us. Making An Energy Efficient Historic Home A Swiss couple has had first hand experience with making an energy efficient historic home. … Continue reading Lessons from retrofitting an historic home →